The Flood in Lunigiana and Cinque Terre

It is such a disastrous sight to see such a lovely place like Cinque Terre being damaged by a massive amount of mud, debris, and water. The little borough of Manarola got almost completely destroyed by the avalanche that slided down from the mountain into the sea. The characteristic colored houses now all lay lifeless and gray of mud. It will take time to bring them back to their life, but the dead ones, buried under meters of sludge, will never be brought back again.

Aulla in Lunigiana is just one of the Tuscan cities to have been hit by the water wall. Each passing year I hear on the Italian news that such disasters could have been avoided. Massive deforestation along bank rivers, riverbeds not being cleaned to preserve river wildlife, concrete layering, wild urbanization, and climatic changes create each year a dangerous cocktail that never fails to explode. This cocktail produces similar effects all over the world. The more the damages produced, the more the intensity of the phenomenon.

Italy is a long and thin country, surrounded by sea, dotted with lakes, wrinkled up by rivers and mountain chains. Its ecosystem is extremely fragile, and constantly menaced by human mistakes and natural disasters such as the recent one.
Scraping rivers destroys wildlife, but not doing it produces blockages bringing to these extreme consequences. How to stop this vicious cycle?

I think there is little to do, as the contemporary strategy is that of building and making money, taking great risks though. The Italian proverb "meglio un uovo oggi che una gallina domani", or better an egg today that a chicken tomorrow seems to be taken very seriously in Italy.

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The Riots of Rome and The Cloudburst

One might think that some sort of religious punishment hit Rome after so much violence struck the city during the "black-block" protests. The water that came down, a staggering 170 millimeters in just few minutes, was not absorbed by the sewage system, and washed away the memories of the riots altogether with the lives of two people.

I do not believe in anything like a superior punisher, even because those that needed to be reprehended for their nonsensical acts were far away from Rome during the cloudburst. To tell you the truth, the cloudburst was quite manageable, and it resulted in much greater issues than it should have just because the city did not spend as much as it should have to clean up its waste water system. In other words, the two deaths could have been easily avoided.

Actually, the mess that resulted from the rioting could also have been avoided. Some say the worst fringes of the protest should have been cracked down more violently, but who knows. From an outsider that relocated to Italy it is sad to see that a pacific protest with 98% of the people just dancing, marching or simply voicing their concerns is completely ruined by that 2% with no intention of building any constructive, meaningful point of view.

I wonder what makes people feel like thrashing such a wonderful city such as Rome. If I were marching along one of the magnificent boulevards in Rome I would jut stay all the time with my nose up looking at the monuments and palaces, no matter if ancient. The center of the city is just splendid, mixing a variety of Classic, Neoclassic, Liberty, Roman, and Medieval styles. It seems like you are spending time on a time machine. But can time be perceived on a time machine? Of course not. Time in Rome passes by so quickly that you can find yourself at the end of the day and not remember what you did and where you went to.

My advice: let others riot, and the sky pour water. You just head towards the nearest "Trattoria" and feast in front of a plate full of "Bucatini Amatriciana", "Bruschetta" or "Abbacchio". When you are done the sky will be clear and the streets safe again!

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Termoli in Molise: A Short Overview

Termoli, a well known tourist resort on the coast of Molise, is an industrialized city that continues to grow. At the same time it preserves many elements from the past, an important witness to a historical reality of great prestige. The town has numerous treasures belonging to an ancient past as the imposing Cathedral, the ancient village, dating from the Twelfth century and showcasing a Romanesque-Apulian style, and the Swabian castle of Frederick II.

The watchtowers along the beach, recalling the ancient Saracen invasions were reconstructed according to their original design and this is now a typical meeting point to taste the delicious local seafood dishes.

The ancient heart of the city is perched atop a cliff that falls steeply into the sea. The original name of the ancient center is exactly Old Village (Borgo Vecchio). It looks like a lovely walled citadel, made up of squares and streets. Among them is the most emblematic Vico Il Castello, one of the narrowest city alleys in Europe.

The Castle is conventionally defined as Swabian, probably due to a restructuring dating from 1247, ordered by Frederick II. The linearity of the structure and its defensive characteristics suggest that it was built in Norman times (XI century) at the site where there was a tower of the Lombard period. Since 1885, the Castle of Termoli was included among the national monuments and elected as a regional history museum.

At the center of town stands the Cathedral, built in Romanesque-Pugliese style over ancient ruins of a Roman temple, whose foundations date back probably to the Sixth century. Inside are the relics of St. Timothy and St. Basso, patron of the city. The cathedral is also renowned for its splendid mosaics.

A splendid feature is the wide view over the port offered by the broadwalk at whose side stands the Torretta.

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